November 11, 2016

When our clinics and hospitals crumble

Yesterday, videos circulated on social media showing the ceiling crashing down in Kelinik Kesihatan Taiping.

This clinic is said to be one of the busiest in the country and in the video, the rainwater can be seen gushing down from the broken ceiling as the staff try to figure out how to deal with the flooding inside.

A video in Malay daily Harian Metro shows the ceiling tiles coming down, as if there was an earthquake happening.

Today, The Star reported that the 5B male medical ward at Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun in Ipoh was vacated after a short circuit last night.

And all these incidents come right after the most tragic fire at the Hospital Sultanah Aminah which killed six and injured scores of patients, when the Intensive Care Unit caught fire.

It looks like either the authorities are not really that bothered even after that fire, or they have not learn their lesson to ensure that our healthcare centers are safe for the people seeking treatment and working inside.

Every Auditor-General’s Report, we can easily find shoddy construction of our Kelinik Kesihatan or Hospital Kerajaan, while someone pocketed the extra cash in doing so.

Year in year out, the media will highlight this right after the reports, and yet, nothing much is done after all the hoo-ha for a few days.

Perhaps, only in Malaysia, if you do not die from your illness, you may just be seeking death when seeking treatment in government-run healthcare centres.